Sydney Morning Herald State Political Editor

THE independent state MP for Sydney, Alex Greenwich, is calling for the NSW Auditor-General, Peter Achterstraat, to be involved in assessing James Packer's proposal for a $1 billion hotel and casino at Barangaroo to safeguard the interests of taxpayers.

Mr Greenwich has written to Mr Achterstraat requesting that he work with the panel established by the state government to assess the net financial benefit to NSW of a second Sydney casino.

''It is essential that the panel is assisted by an organisation with experience in financial assessment and whose sole aim is to maximise public benefit,'' Mr Greenwich wrote.

Mr Achterstraat has agreed to meet Mr Greenwich on Friday to discuss the proposal.

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Mr Greenwich said that it was ''vital'' that the Auditor-General play a part in the review because of community concerns about how the project has been fast-tracked by the government.

''Whether you support the casino or not, everyone in the state would surely want to make sure NSW is getting the best deal possible,'' he said.

The government announced last year that Crown's plan for a VIP-only casino and six-star hotel at Barangaroo has been given initial approval to progress to stage two of its assessment process for ''unsolicited proposals''.

Crown argues that the project requires the revenue from the casino to make it financially viable.

It wants the government to issue a second Sydney licence when the monopoly licence held by Echo, the owner of the Star casino, expires in 2019.

The panel, chaired by the former Future Fund chairman David Murray, has been asked to report on the net financial benefit to NSW of issuing a second casino licence, which may include tax rates and whether or not a licence fee should be paid.

The usual role of the Auditor-General is to examine projects and transactions after they have occurred. The office produced a report on the proposal by the Iemma government in 2008 to privatise the state's electricity network, but this was only after legislation was changed to request that the Auditor-General do the work.

Mr Greenwich has also written to the Premier, Barry O'Farrell, asking him to support Mr Achterstraat's involvement.

However, a spokesman for the Department of Premier and Cabinet said on Monday it ''would not be appropriate'' to involve Mr Achterstraat.

''The Auditor-General is the independent auditor of the NSW public service, and it is important that the independence of his office is maintained,'' he said.

''The Auditor-General will be able to audit the Crown Ltd assessment process through his normal work''.

The spokesman said the consultant Deloitte has been appointed as commercial adviser and Baker & McKenzie as legal adviser to the assessment panel following a tender process.

Deloitte has engaged specialist subcontractors, including Peter Cohen, former CEO of the Victorian Gambling Commission, as its gambling regulation expert.

''Deloitte and Baker & McKenzie, and their subcontractors, have certified that they do not have a conflict of interest in performing this engagement,'' he said.

The department engaged Deloitte last year to provide an independent report on an economic benefit analysis of the project commissioned by Crown from Allen Consulting.

Mr O'Farrell has refused to release the Deloitte report, arguing that it is cabinet-in-confidence.